Azerbaijan - Displaced Women Survivors of Conflict

This displaced Azerbaijani population has faced the same obstacles when they try to return home as do returnees in other countries. The homes they left behind are in shambles or completely destroyed. Other families may have taken up residence in their homes or on their land. Many have tried to integrate into the crowded capital of Baku, but the influx of refugees has led to tension with longtime Baku residents.

Eleven years after the ceasefire, they struggle to survive; many still live as refugees or returnees in camps polluted by pesticides or open sewers. Their shelters are abandoned railway cars, dilapidated buildings, the backs of trucks or homes dug underground. They try to live on humanitarian assistance in the amount of $3.50 per month for each adult and $2.10 for each child. Started by a woman who was herself displaced, the Women Initiative Group seeks to help women who are trying to reintegrate into their rural communities or settle permanently in the cities.

The group challenges cultural traditions that discourage the education of girls, many of whom are pushed into early marriage between the ages of 13-17. As a result, many girls become pregnant and do not finish school. In turn, the children of these undereducated mothers have fewer chances to pursue an education or gain skills to obtain better-paid work. Displaced women are more likely to become victim to the increasing prostitution, trafficking, drug use and violence.

Committed to deepening women's sense of agency, the group has organized seminars on family planning among women in the Sumgait IDP (internally displaced persons) camp to encourage women to use contraception, rather than abortion, as a means of birth control. As a result of the group's educational efforts, one of the area hospitals agreed to take care of women suffering from reproductive health problems free of charge.